# 蚕 — silkworm

蚕 means “silkworm”. It is a JLPT N1 kanji written with 10 strokes. On'yomi: サン (san). Kun'yomi: かいこ (kaiko). You'll see it in words such as 蚕 (kaiko, “silkworm”).

- Meaning: silkworm
- On'yomi: サン (san)
- Kun'yomi: かいこ (kaiko)
- Strokes: 10
- Level: JLPT N1 · set Animals 4

## How to remember 蚕

Parts: 天 heaven · 虫 insect

## Words with 蚕

| Word | Reading | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 蚕 | かいこ (kaiko) | silkworm |

## Don't confuse it with

[春](https://moji.ninja/n4-kanji/spring/) · [送](https://moji.ninja/n4-kanji/send/) · [奏](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/play-music/) · [奉](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/offer-reverently/)

## More in the “Animals 4” set

[雌](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/female/) · [蛍](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/firefly/) · [牙](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/fang/) · [蚊](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/mosquito/) · [蜂](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/bee/) · [蚕](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/silkworm/) · [餌](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/bait/) · [哺](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/suckle/) · [繭](https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/cocoon/)

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From Moji Ninja (https://moji.ninja/), a free app for learning hiragana, katakana and the JLPT kanji from N5 to N1 with spaced repetition. Page: https://moji.ninja/n1-kanji/silkworm/. Last updated 2026-11-01.